Binder and fastening device for the same



Oct. 3, 1950 R. WENDT BINDER AND FASTENING DEVICE FOR THE SAME Filed April 19, 1946 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Oct. 3, 1950 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed April 19, 1946 Inventor,

Patented Oct. 3, 1950 BINDER AND FASTENING DEVICE FOR THE SAME Robert'H. Wendt, Evanston, Ill.

Application April 19, 1946, Serial No. 663,308

The present invention relates to binders and fastening devices for binders of the type which are adapted to secure letters, documents,land other papers between a pair of covers for filing. One of the difficulties with the binders of the ,4 Claims. (01. 24-153) necessary to grasp the cover in order to manipuprior art of this type lies in the fact that when ever it is necessary to remove one paper from the interior or the lower part of a stack'of papers in such a binder, one must lift off all the papers which are above it, and even though one tries to hold the apertures in alignment, this becomes practically impossible, since there is nothing to hold the papers except the fingers of the operator, and it is especially difiicult when the operator is going to remove one document from the remaining assembly.

Another disadvantage is that in the devices the prior art the prongs which pass through the papers soon become bent and crooked and thus are difficult to insert in the apertures in the papers, even when the sheets are arranged with the apertures aligned.

Another disadvantage of the devices of the prior art lies in the fact that there is considerable waste in the manufacture of those devices.

One of the objects of the present invention is the provision of an improved binder and fastening device which is so arranged that the binder may be taken apart at any point for removal of one or more documents, the fastening devices still holding the sheets in alignment so that it is a simple matter to takethem apart, lay them down, remove such documents as are desired, and put them together again.

As distinguished from the devices of the prior art, in which it is frequently necessary to rearrange documents, sheet by sheet, after they have been removed, the present binder can be put together again at any point by merelyreinserting the prongs which are guided by complementary prongs carried by the other section.

Another object of the invention is the provision of an improved fastening device of the class described in which the prongs are adapted to be arranged at right angles to the cover, and in which they are preferably resilient, so that they tend to point at right angles at all times when they are not subjected to a bending force. Thus the prongs always point in the right direction, and, being of resilient material, they do not tend to get bent or out of line.

Another object of. the invention is the provision of an improved fastener of the class described which, when assembled with the cover,

is adapted to stay assembled, so that it is only late the fastener, as the fastener and cover operate as a single unit, and any sheets which happen to be upon the fastener prongs also act as aunit with the cover and fastener.

Another object of the invention is the provision of an improved fastener structure which utilizes a minimum amount of material, and which may be constructed of various types of material, which may be used over and over again, and which is adapted to lock the papers tightly in the covers, and to minimize the possibility of the papers being torn by the prongs.

Another object of the invention is the provision of an improved fastener and binder assembly, which is simple, capable of economical manufacture, easy to manipulate, economical of material, sturdy, and adapted to be used for a long period of time without noticeable wear.

Other objects and advantages of the invention will be apparent from the following description and the accompanying drawings, in which similar characters of reference indicate similar parts throughout the several views.

Referring to the drawings, of whichthere are two sheets,

Fig. 1 is a fragmentary side elevational view, in separated form, showing a pair of covers, a pair of fasteners, and a multiplicity of sheets, and illustrating the way in which the binder may'be separated when a sheet is to be removed from the middle or any other point.

Fig. 2 is a plan view of one of the fastening devices shown before the paper supporting prongs have been bent into right angle position.

Fig. 3 is a plan view of one of the fastening devices shown after it has been completed and illustrated in connection with a plurality of apertures in the cover to show its cooperation with the cover.

Fig. 4 is a sectional view taken on. the plane of the line EI of Fig. 3, looking in the direction of the arrows, showing the structure of the slider.

Fig. 5 is a sectional view taken on the plane of the line 2-2 of Fig. 2, looking in the direction of the arrows, showing the curvature of the the fastener.

Fig. 6 is a sectional View taken on the plane of the line 33 of Fig. 2, looking in the direction of the arrows, showing the curvature of the parts of the fastener at this point.

Fig. '7 is a fragmentary sectional View taken on the plane of the line 5-4 of Fig. 2, with a part of the cover added, showing the modeof installing the fastener on a cover.

parts of Fig. 8 is a fragmentary end elevational view of a binder, with the covers shown in partial section, on a plane passing through the axis of the apertures.

Fig. 9 is a fragmentary elevational view of a fastener shown in connection with a cover in section along the same plane in the course of securing the fastener to the cover.

The present fasteners are preferably made of relatively thin sheet steel, and the shape of the stock or the finished fastener is somewhat similar to the shape of the steel used in steel tape lines having a slightly curved cross section which is adapted to hold the tape straight, but will permit its bending, if desired. The stock of which the fasteners are made may, however, be made much thinner than the stock of the steel tapes.

Referring to Fig. 1, the binder is there indicated by the numeral l0, andit consists of a pair of covers II and |2, a pair of fasteners I3, l4, and the assembly of sheets, which is here divided in two sections, l5, IS. The covers may be "made of any suitable material, but are preferably made of indurated fibre, having a separate attachment flange l1, l8 on each cover, the attachment flange being covered with fabric pasted to it, and also pasted to each of the covers, and forming a hinge at I 9, 20.

The fasteners are preferably so placed in the flanges l8 in the apertures so provided, that when the binder is shut the cover l2 folds over against the fasteners |3 and I4, covering them.

Referring to Fig. 2, this is an illustration showing'one of the fasteners in the course of its manufacture. It consists of a body portion 2|, which may be of any suitable length, and which is preferably substantially rectangular, with rounded corners. The body portion preferably has a pair of securing tongues 22, 23 which may be punched out of the body or located at its ends. In the present embodiment, due to the desire to have all 'of the sheet mounting prongs curve in the same direction, the tongue 23 extends from one end, that is, the right end of body 2|, while the tongue 22' is punched out of the body near the other end.

Each of these tongues is formed with a downwardly extending portion 24 long enough to extend through the cover attaching flange I! or I8,

andwi th a horizontally extending portion 25 which engages under or on the other side of the attaching flange I! or IE, as shown in Fig. '7. The tongues 22 and 23 have their downwardly extending portions 24 spaced sufficiently so that they will pass through holes located at a predetermined distance in the cover flanges l1 and I8, and so that the horizontal portions 25 will then be located to engage the opposite side.

This naturally makes the fastener of too great a length to permit the tongues 22 and 23 to pass into their proper holes when the fastener is fiat and'laid on the cover flange.

In Fig. 9, however, I have illustrated how a cover flange l8, having a pair of holes 26 and 21, may be manipulated with a fastener by bending the fastener to bring its tongues 22 and 23 closer together. The fastener 2|, in this case, may have its prong 22 first hooked through the aperture 26. Then the fastener 2| is bent upwardly, which is permitted by the resilient nature of the fastener, as the fastener body tends to become fiat in a lateral direction, as indicated at 28, when it is bent by the fingers.

This will shorten the distance between the tongues 22 and 23 so that the tongue 23 can be inserted in the aperture 21 and moved over into the position which is shown at the top of Fig. 8.

The tendency of the resilient fastener body 2| to stay straight will cause the tongues 22 and 23 to secure the fastener on the cover flange. This, itself, is a great advantage, because these parts tend to fall apart in the binders of the prior art whenever a user is trying to take off or put on additional sheets. With this construction the fastener and cover may be handled as a unit, or the fastener, cover, and a multiplicity of sheets, such as indicated at I5 or IS in Fig. 1, may be handled as a unit.

Referring now to Fig. 2, the body 2| is provided with a pair of sheet supporting prongs 29, 3|]. Prong 29 extends backwardly into the body 2| by reason of the slits at 32 and 33, which serve to form the slot 3| when the prong 29 is bent at right angles, as shown in Fig. 3. The body 21 preferably has a slight lateral curvature, as is shown in Fig. 5, tending to keep it longitudinally straight since it is made of resilient material, as described.

The prong 29 also preferably has a curvature, but, due to its narrower width, the curvature is on a smaller radius, as shown in Fig. 5. The ends of the prongs are preferably rounded, as indicated at 34, so as to permit them to be guided into apertures in the cover flanges and the sheets.

The bases of the prongs are indicated at 35 and 36, in Fig. 2, and these are, of course, the locations of the prongs when they are bent at right angles, as shown in Fig. 3. The distance between these prongs or between their bases is such that the prongs register substantially with the apertures in the covers and sheets, which apertures are indicated at 31, 38. Such covers are usually provided with a multiplicity of apertures in their flanges I! and I8, regularly spaced, and arranged in accordance with the requirements of the fastener, which can also be done in this case.

When the fasteners are completed, the prongs 29 and 30 extend outwardly from the body at right angles, as shown in Figs. 1 and 3, and, the material being resilient, the bend at the bases 35 and 36 may be a permanent bend, formed in tempered, resilient steel or other resilient material, so that the prongs always tend to project upwardly at right angles.

The fasteners are each preferably provided with a pair of sliders, indicated at 39, 4|! in Fig. 3. Each slider preferably has a body portion 4|, Fig. 4, which corresponds substantially to the outer curvature of the fastener body 2|.

As space must be provided for the prongs under the sliders, each slider has a pair of outwardly extending offsets 42, joining a curved portion 43 which provides a space 44 for the prongs 29 or 30 of the opposite fastener. Each slider has a bend at right angles at 45, and a part 46, which extends across the edge of the body 2|, and this is true of both edges of the slider.

Each edge of the slider also has a retaining flange 4! for engaging under the body 2| of the fastener, and the retaining flanges 41 extend in opposite directions, as shown in Fig. 4.

Thus the sliders are arranged to be mounted on the body 2| for sliding movement between the tongues 22 and 23 which tend to retain them in place, and between the prongs 29 and 30, which tend to prevent their removal. They can be removed, however, by bending any of the prongs or tongues down into the plane of the body 2|.

According to the present invention, a fastener I3 or M-is secured to the flange ll or I 8 ofeach: cover, and, each fastener hass pr ongs Brand-til extending. at right angles to. ,the-body 2d of-gthe fastener. In order to eliminatewconfusion asito these prongsthey have been given-,different numbers in Fig. 8 so as to distinguish between them. The prong StagFig; 8, isaa prong like number 30, extending downwardlyfrom the fastener l3 and bent over. at right angles outside thefastener Wand secured by a slider dill ""This prongQp'jaIsses through a slot 311) in the'fast'ener M, which. is like the slot 3.?lat' the left'ofTEig, 3I q i The prong 29bis carried by the fastener I 4 extending upward at right angles inside the prong 30a, Fig. 8, and bent over at right angles outside the fastener body l3 and secured by a slider 39a. This prong 2% passes through the aperture 50 in Fig; 3, left by punching out the I prong 30, the aperture being indicated at 59a in Fig. 8.

The arrangement at the opposite end is exactly the same as the fastener Hi, and has a prong 3% carried at its left end of the type'of the prong 30 shown in Fig. 2. The prong 36b extends upwardly through the papers and is bent at right angles on top of the fastener l3 and is secured by a slider 40a. The prong 38b passes through a slot 31a, similar to the slot 3| of Fig. 3.

Another prong 29a, carried by the fastener 13,

I extends downwardly at right angles through the sheets and is bent over and secured by a slider 3% outside the fastener M. This prong 29a passes through a hole in the fastener I l like the hole 50 of Fig. 3. Thus the prongs on the opposed fasteners 13 and I4 pass through the same holes, and may be bent over to secure the sheets in place by means of the sliders.

removal or filing of sheets atany point in the assembly.

The'present fasteners have no.tendency.- to tear the; sheets, and may be manipulated with lessdifficulty than the devices of the prior art. The present fasteners may be made very economically, and they will last much longer than the devices of the prior art by virtue of the fact that they are resilient and have a predetermined shape or set so that the prongs do not become crooked at the .various points where they have been bent, as do the bendable tin fasteners of the prior art.

While I have illustrated a preferred embodiv. ment of my invention, many modifications may be made without departing from the spirit of the invention, and I do not wish to be limited to the precise details of construction set forth, but de- By virtue of the arrangement of the curvatures from the foregoing description. 'However, .it is" desirable to point out that when madeof resilient material, suitably curved as described, and the prongs pre-bent at a right angle, these prongs always extend in the right direction, and it is fairly easy to place the sheets upon them without tearing the sheets. V

Withthe devices of the prior art, the prongs get so-bent that they may extend in any direction, and a prong must actually be held in posi tion to enter a hole in a sheet to be sure that the sheet will not be torn.

Furthermore, an assembly likeFig. 8 can have its sliders moved to the central position, which; will permit theprongs to spring out to their transverse or right angle position. I Then the operator can grasp the sheets I5 and It and separate them wherever hewish'es, each section of sheets being held by its cover. and the prongs of its fastener. This separation would naturally be accomplished at a point. where additional sheets are to be entered, or some sheet is to be removed.

' Then it is'a simple matter to'put the assembly together, because each prong is guided by its opposite prong into the apertures in the sheets, the prongs tend to extend in the right direction in alignment with the apertures, and the holes in sire to avail myself of all changes within the scope of the appended claims.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent of the United States, is:

1. A fastener for binding round-apertured paper sheets in a stack, separable between any two sheets into .two bound units, comprising an elongated sheet metal body which is substantially rectangular in plan and which is made of laterally arched and of resilient tempered steel, said body being concave and having a air of resilient laterally curved prongs punched out of the body .material and preformed to extend at right angles "having a slot in its other end and beyond the adjacent prong for'passing the prong of a similar fastener, and sliding means carried by said body for holding the prongs of said similar fastener in a bent-over condition against said body, the prongs when released, springing back to the right angle position with respect to the body with the ends of the prongs spaced automatically to register with said apertures when released.

2. A fastener according to claim 1, in which the prongs are arched oppositely to the body from which they are punched, so that the prongs may be arched in the same direction as the body of said similar fastener against whichthe prongs are bent over.

3. A fastener according to claim 1, in which the sliding means comprises a pair of sheet metal clips secured 'about said body, and having a curved body to fit the body of the fastener and 4. A- fastener according to claim 1, in which the body has a pair of punched out tongues, one adbody and ermitting ittospring back to straight whichthe: prongs pass are.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 285,640 McGill Sept. 25, 1883 988,090 Hamilton Mar. 28, 1911 1,480,952 Potter Jan. 15, 1924 Number 7 Number Name Date Charlton Mar. 5, 1929 Brennan July 29, 1930 Kline Aug. 2, 1932 Unger Nov. 27, 1934 FOREIGN PATENTS Country Date Austria Sept. 10, 1914 Germany Sept. 18, 1897 Germany May 15, 1906 Great Britain Sept. 21, 1936 

